ABSTRACT
The American-Saudi relationship, during the reign of King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz has been a fruitful and special one. It has represented an extraordinary partnership through which Saudi Arabia's immense oil wealth was discovered and used to promote a massive program of development aimed at transforming the country into a modern, industrialised nation. The United States had always been aware that strong American support of Israel constituted an impediment to totally cordial American-Saudi relations. In general, the Saudis contended that the Americans should use a more 'evenhanded' approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict. In July 1973, a leading Middle East news reporter stated that Saudi officials had warned of an oil cut-off in the event of another Arab-Israeli war. A brief historical examination of the Saudi-American relationship reveals persistent misperception from the beginning of serious relations at the governmental level.
